


Somewhere We'd Rather Be

by winters_prince



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, F/F, Long-Distance Relationship, Pearl's mean, Ruby is a geologist in college, Sapphire is mysterious, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2017-07-06
Packaged: 2018-05-28 15:15:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6334024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/winters_prince/pseuds/winters_prince
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ruby's a college geologist whom nobody other than her roomate can handle.  She joins a secret santa group for the entirety of Beach City on a whim, and gets paired with a total stranger-who lives in Florida.  When she messages the stranger to explain the mistake, she doesn't expect the stranger to take an interest in her, and for something to bloom...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Misunderstanding

Ruby had joined the group for the Beach City Secret Santa group almost entirely on a whim. She wasn’t the most sociable of the people of Beach City, although it wasn’t for lack of passion; actually, she turned out to just be too much for people, save for her roommate. Usually, it suited her fine; she was almost to busy to have friends, she told herself. Still, she hoped that maybe a secret santa party would be nice; maybe she could reconnect with some of her old pals.

 

That’s why, confused, she raised her eyebrow when she got a message from the founder of the group, and realized she didn’t recognize the name she’d been given.

 

“Hey, Amethyst,” she called to her roommate. “You ever met a girl named Sapphire who lived here?”

 

“I told you before, dude, I’m only a junior. How would I know who else lived in this room?” came the reply, her roommate pulling back one of the cups of her headphones to hear her.

 

“No, no, not like here like this room. Here like Beach City. You know anyone named Sapphire?”

 

“Sapphire?” Amethyst asked, having gotten up to lean over Ruby’s shoulder for a look. A message from “Steven U.” blinked on Ruby’s screen.

 

_Your secret santa is Sapphire! I bet you’ll know what she’ll love if you look at her page!_

 

“Nah, dude, no bells ringin’. Sorry.”

 

“But that doesn’t make sense!” Ruby exclaimed, confused. “If there’s anyone I don’t know, you know them! So who’s this Sapphire, then? She doesn't even have an initial for her last name.”

 

Amethyst snorted. “Why don’tcha click the link and check her out then, rube with the tude? Jog that sterling memory of yours.”

 

With a harrumph, Ruby clicked on the hyperlink Steven had sent with his message as Amethyst fell back onto her bed, asleep in seconds. After about a minute of loading, followed by another five solid minutes of staring at the page, Ruby had gotten nowhere. Sapphire, it seemed, was a local musician and acapella singer, and she really didn’t have a last name. It was just Sapphire. Even after some heavy digging, Ruby couldn’t see any photos of her. It was all just her album covers or art that her fans had made for her. But no photos. That’s...strange, to say the least.

 

Strangest of all, she didn’t even live in Beach City. According to her profile, she lived in Keystone-that was two entire states away. Steven must’ve made a mistake-he probably just pooled everyone who had their location set to Beach City, and sent them all an invite. Maybe he just mis-clicked and invited Sapphire on accident from his list of friends. Either way, she really didn’t want an awkward confusion with Steven or with this complete stranger, regardless of how strange they were.

 

She opened another conversation tab, sending a request to Sapphire and typing out a message for her.

 

**_hey so uh i think my friend made a mistake or something??? there’s this secret santa group i joined and i got you as my secret santa and i don’t know you but it’s a local thing and i know everyone around here and i don’t think we’ve ever met so i figured i’d message you and let you know_ **

 

That settles that. At least if she saw it. She needed to accept the invite to the conversation, and even then, she’s probably way busy as a musician and-

 

Ruby’s computer pinged, and she jumped. She had a response in the chat window. Sapphire had accepted.

 

_Oh, hi Ruby! Yes, I remember that invite. I accepted it because Steven’s message was just so genuine, how could you say no to that?_

 

Ruby remembered that invite as well. Steven had written about three solid paragraphs about how great it was to bring all his friends together and how he thought a secret santa was just the thing, seeing as they couldn’t have a beach party. His friends just so happened to include everyone in Beach City, from that tall, sweaty guy mayoring the city to the tall, sweaty guy at the counter at the Big Donut.

**_haaha yeah he’s always like that. it’s cute_ **

**_so um_ **

**_how did u know my name? do we know each other already or something i’m so sorry if i missed you_ **

 

Ruby couldn’t understand why she felt nervous talking to Sapphire. She didn’t turn into a bundle of nerves in front of celebrities, and if she did know Sapphire already, she couldn’t remember. Nonetheless, she eagerly opened the tab back up as soon as she heard the *ping* of her messenger client.

 

_What could that boy get up to with that kind of charisma? He definitely seems sweet at least._

 

_Silly, I know your name because it’s up there in the chat window! Ruby Q. It’s cute!_

 

Ruby raised her eyebrow. Cute? Her? They’d just met, how would she know?

**_hey, uh, thanks! your...uh, the way you type, is cute._ **

 

_The way I type?_

 

**_yeah! it’s so formal. i feel like i’m writing a letter to royalty when i reply._ **

 

_That’s so funny! I’m...definitely not royalty, though. I just like the way that type like this looks._

 

_Anyway, don’t worry about the secret santa thing. No surprises ruined here! Even if it was a mistake like you said, I actually got you, as a matter of fact. Sorry to ruin the surprise._

 

**_honestly im hurt i was hoping for it to be that totally definitely hot mailman_ **

 

_Oh no, you have a hot mailman? I’ll have to move into Beach City right away._

 

**_don’t you dare our supply of totally hot and non-obnoxious mailmen is limited to a single mailman._ **

_You have one mailman for the entire city?_

 

**_you don’t know the half of it._ **

 

_Well, you don’t have to worry. The mailman probably wouldn’t go out with me to start with no matter how hot he is._

 

**_oh don’t say that im sure you could seduce plenty of innocent mailmen_ **

 

_Well, it’d be hindered pretty significantly by me being gay, but I’m sure you’re right outside of that._

 

**_oh_ **

**_shit_ **

**_haha sorry i didn’t mean to bother you_ **

**_im gay too you know it’s not like a bad thing or anything_ **

 

_You’re fine! I’m not bothered at all. It takes plenty to bother me in the first place._

 

_I am glad you messaged me, though!_

 

That, Ruby wasn’t expecting. This stranger was certainly very...forward, if anything. She shot back a response a little faster than she probably should have.

 

**_you are...? i’m confused._ **

 

_Of course! You’re my secret santa, after all._

 

_How am I supposed to shop for someone if I don’t even know them? I was about ready to message you myself!_

 

_Also, please forget right away that you’re my secret santa. It’s...in the name after all._

**_oh_ **

**_wow_ **

**_you don’t need to shop for me haha i know we’re strangers and all_ **

_Well, don’t worry about being strangers. That just means we have to not be strangers, right?_

 

What was up with this girl? She was so...invested. In spite of herself, Ruby was also getting invested-it had definitely been long enough since anyone had shown her any amount of attention. When everyone else your age already knows or dislikes you, it’s a little hard to spread out.

 

**_i’m, well, you know my name, and i know yours, so we’re a little ahead._ **

 

**_it’s been nice to meet you._ **

 

_I agree! It has been nice to meet me._

 

 _That was a joke, you’ve been great as well_.

 

Ruby laughed at that one, although it was more of a loud snort, before tossing a glance to make sure Amethyst was still asleep before typing back. Amethyst valued her sleep more heavily than she valued gold.

 

**_yeah yeah very funny wise girl_ **

 

**_if i’m so great why not keep talkin’ with me, huh?_ **

_What makes you think I won’t just stop replying, huh?_

 

Ruby’s eyes narrowed. If there was something she didn’t like, it was people toying with her. But it wasn’t like she couldn’t toy back.

 

**_cause you’ve replied to everything so far. i’m just too interesting to keep away, huh?_ **

There was a long silence, and Ruby found that she kept tabbing back to the chat window more and more to check for her Sapphire’s reply. After a few hours, she’d felt more upset than she’d expected, and moreso than when she couldn’t even recognize Sapphire. She must’ve pushed her away, like she usually did with new people. She let out a heavy sigh.

 

...Whatever, it didn’t matter, she decided. She was tough. Tough enough to carry on without anyo-

 

There was a ping, and Ruby clicked the tab faster than she could blink.

 

_Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry. My manager barged in and yanked me off to a meeting. I hope you’re still there...I hope you message back._

 

_See you soon, I hope!_

 

Ruby moved to start typing before she looked at the clock-she only had thirty minutes to get to her class. She sighed, sounding especially grumpy, before she stood up and heard another *ping*.

 

Sapphire had sent her a friend request.

 

_Oh, and you’re definitely too interesting to keep away! Please add me and we’ll keep up this...this. I’ll see you!_

 

_-Sapphire._

 

Ruby was...stunned, to say the least. She’d made a friend. Moreso, she’d made friends with a complete stranger, and they decided to stick around after the first conversation! She hoped she could talk to Sapphire more. They were...interesting.

 

Practically starting to float, Ruby packed up her gear and headed to her first class of the day.


	2. An accusation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby attends class, and makes an unexpected (and unwanted) acquaintance.

Ruby managed to get to her class with about six minutes to spare, a heavy sigh pushing it’s way out of her lungs. If there was one thing she hated, it was making people wait. She collapsed into her seat a mile away from herself; she was too focused on this stranger to think about her class.

Who was Sapphire? Why did she seem so interested in Ruby? And why hadn’t she ever heard of her before? Her head was swimming.

Shaking herself off, she tried to focus on what was coming. At the very least, she’d have a decently easy class today. Rose wasn’t a bad teacher-she’d never claim that-but she tended to lecture for nearly the entire class period, and doted on her students pretty heavily. She didn’t know the woman very well, but she liked her enough to follow up when she asked the class to keep an eye on the invites her son would be sending out soon about a month back. She talked about her son and her husband like they were her whole world...Ruby couldn’t imagine being that close to anyone.

Rose finally arrived, huffing gently and sweeping off her dress. “Sorry I’m so late, everyone,” she said, not realizing she’d only been about two minutes in. “My son found this stray cat, and I just couldn’t leave until he was done trying to convince Greg and I to keep it.” She giggled, making a note that they’d agree if he’d give the poor thing a bath first. “I’ve never seen that boy run to the bathtub faster than he did just then.”

Ruby smiled. She might not understand what Rose was so fixated on in her family, but it was sweet when she had stories about them. Everyone loved Steven, and more stories about him at least meant less time in-lecture.

Ruby couldn’t help herself, however; when Rose began her lecture, something about the relevance of archaelogical digs to regional geological studies, her brain went on auto-pilot mode. She jot down notes about as quickly and exactly as Rose spoke, but her thoughts were not in any sort on the lecture. She couldn’t stop herself from letting her thoughts drift to Sapphire, and the secret santa closing in.

What was she going to get her? How was she going to get her anything? She said that she’d had a manager, and her page showed that she was a musician. She must be loaded already. What are you supposed to get someone that, for one, you don’t even know, and for another, probably has everything they want?

And what was her deal? They’d only talked for about an hour yesterday, but she was so...friendly. She was so sure that they just had to become friends so that she knew what to get Ruby. She didn’t need to get her anything! Why did she feel so ready to connect with this stranger? Now she was forcing Ruby to get her something too. She had to get to know Sapphire, now. Not that that was a problem with Ruby, exactly; but she had a tendency to pick up speed when she started to get frustrated. She’d tried to connect with people like this before-it didn’t work. It never worked. What would happen when Sapphire got tired of her, like everyone else had? What would she do if she liked Sapphire too much to handle her leaving, like she knew Sapphire would?

She didn’t even realize how hard she was pressing her pencil against the paper until it snapped, and she let out a yelp in surprise.

“Miss Q?” Rose’s voice cut through her thoughts almost instantly. She had a strange ability for that; her lectures could lul you to sleep, but one moment of her calling attention was all it took.

“Wh-what? Yes, Ma’am?” Ruby had shot up from her seat and her thoughts, eyes wide. “Uh-m, I'm sorry, ma’am. I was a little distracted from the lecture, can you ask-ask the question again?” She said, trying to play it cool and failing completely.

Rose tilted her head, looking worried. “I asked if you were alright, Miss Q. You...seem stressed. Is something the matter?”

Ruby’s anger burned, but she couldn’t bring herself to direct it at Rose-she hadn’t done anything wrong. Instead, she let out a frustrated huff. “Yes, Ma’am. Everything’s alright. I’m-sorry for interrupting the lecture.”

Rose let out a big smile, waving her hand. “It’s not problem, Miss Q...now, moving on...”

Ruby looked down at her paper to resume notating, but she was taken aback by what she’d done to her paper. The graphite of her pencil had been pressed hard against the paper, making thick, black lines that looked less and less like words until she tore the sheet. Angry as she was, she relied on her notes, and hurriedly started a new page beneath the tear.

The rest of the class went without incident, thankfully enough, and Ruby was able to forget about the building tumbleweed of anger she’d had before the pencil snapped. Shouldering her backpack, she made for the door when a harsh, pitched voice called next to her.

“Excuse me. You. Miss Q.”

That didn’t sound like Rose.

Turning to the source of the voice, she found herself eye-to-neck with the collar of a dance student’s uniform. Looking up, she made eye contact with a sharp-nosed, quite skinny sophomore, a teal eye staring her down like a hawk.

“Uh, yes? Have we...met before?” Ruby said. She may have been a fair amount shorter than this woman, but intimidation was not a familiar feeling to her. She returned her hawk-stare as readily as she could.

“No, but we have now. My name is Pearl.” Her eyes narrowed, and her tone didn’t become the least bit warmer. “What do you think you were trying to pull, back there?”

“...I’m sorry?”

“Back there. That pencil snapping bit. What kind of a stunt was that?” Pearl’s arms were crossed incredulously, and she seemed to think Ruby had just committed some kind of high treason.

“What’re you accusing me of, here? Back off, lady.”

“Back off? That’s a good joke. I’m not the one who cut into an important lecture to have an outburst.”

“Outburst!? Who you think you are, punk!?” Ruby had forgotten her anger before It was back in full swing now.

“I think I’m someone who actually cares about my education. I’m here to learn, not listen to an established and important professor have to babysit.”

“You don’t know me. You don’t get to talk to me like this, alright, Pearl? You have no idea what I’m going through, what I did to get here. You don’t get to think I care any less.” As she spoke, Ruby jabbed a finger at Pearl, doing her best not to take a swing at the woman.

Pearl raised a single eyebrow, her gaze unchanging, although her tone gave away how offended she was at being accused. “I just want you to know-if you disrupt Rose like this much further, we’ll have a problem.”

Ruby’s eyes narrowed, her jabbed finger remaining floating in the air. “We wouldn’t **have** any problem if you stepped about a foot back, and stopped talking to me. I get it. You care. I care too. You don’t need to be at odds with me here.”

“Very well. It’s not my business what your problem is, but what effects Rose effects me, personally. Steer clear of any more...upstarting, and I think we’ll be fine.”

With that, Pearl swept past Ruby, leaving the stocky redhead to storm her way to the lunchroom alone.


	3. Ruby and Fury are Not Unfamiliar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby's still hot from Pearl's intrusion, and Amethyst offers some, but little consolation. Sapphire takes it upon herself to be a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, Ruby's text is bolded and italicized, and Sapphire's is just italicized. Going back and fixing that on the last two chapters too.
> 
> Thanks to Lexi for being a straight-up inspiration w/ Ruby's dialogue

 

Ruby had felt like she was floating when she’d left her room-it had felt like hours ago. She’d befriended someone-a complete stranger, sure, but somebody nonetheless. The moment that Pearl woman opened her mouth, though, she landed. Not just that-she’d landed hard. It had been about an hour since that...confrontation? conversation? Ruby had no idea what to call it. She was, however, still furious, even as she waited for Amethyst to get out as she always did. If she could breathe fire, the cafeteria would’ve burnt down by now.

 

As it was, her soup just offered a few spare plumes of steam to compliment her anger.

 

Amethyst came bouncing out of class, as she always did, “Heeeeeey Ruby tooty fresh n’ fruity, how’s it hang-”

 

“Terrible!” Came the reply, Ruby throwing her arms in the air with such force she almost flipped her soup over. “It’s hanging terrible. Today’s going awful.”

 

“Woah, woah, calm down there, Rube’. What’s wrong. Hit Amethyst with the news!” Amethyst didn’t exactly help whenever Ruby had a tantrum-which was often-but she wasn’t a detriment, either. At the most, venting to Amethyst was like venting to a concerned wall that could pat your back and offer a solution or two.

 

With a huff, the dark redhead threw herself back in her seat. “After geology today, y’know, the lecture with Mrs. Universe? After class today, some...woman came up to me and ranted at me about how I’m a nuisance for interrupting. Like she knew me! Like she can just come up to anyone and start ranting and feel like she’s always right! She’s definitely that type. Tall skinny and full of self righteous sh-”

 

Amethyst cut her off quickly as she could. When Ruby’s mad, she tends to build up like a tumbleweed, and the red in her cheeks made her look like a furious stoplight. “Woah, woah, chill, Rube’. Roll it back. You know this gal?”

 

Ruby shook her head. “Never talked to me before. I haven’t even seen her in class. Just came up and started squawking at me, you know?”

 

Amethyst grinned. “Did you deck ‘er? I woulda decked her.”

 

Ruby sighed. “Wish I had! She got all in my face and there was no point to it. I didn’t even DO anything and it’s just-what’s her problem!?”

 

Amethyst leaned back, taking a bite from her burger. “Dunno, Rube-ix cube. Some people are just like that. Just go out and decide that your business is theirs, you know? Maybe tell her to back off next time you see ‘er. Who was this girl, anyway?”

 

Ruby shrugged. “Pearl. That’s all I got from her. Dunno if she had a last name or anything, but she was really tall and had a bird-nose deal going.”

 

Amethyst laughed at that, and noted that she’d keep an eye out for her. “I won’t rough her up or anything, but I’ll totally keep an eye out. She sounds like a pain.”

 

“Yeah, that’s accurate enough,” Ruby snorted. It was closing in on Amethyst’s next class, so she stood up to head back. Amethyst waved off Ruby as she stood up, promising her it was no problem and that the room would be empty for the next three hours if she needed alone time. After the day she’d been having, Ruby could use some of that before her next class.

 

Sitting down at her desk was much more of a slump. Ruby hated getting angry, because it always took the wind out of her afterward. She popped open her laptop, setting up an old livestream to watch and relax to. The day, however, wasn’t quite done with her yet-she noticed her other, open tab blinking, reading that she’d received a message from Sapphire.

 

Hi Ruby! I saw you accepted my request so I thought that I’d open up a new chat.

 

_Anyway I like...Just woke up and figured you might like an update. Here if you wanna talk about your day, or something._

 

The noise Ruby made could be halfway described as a groan and a sigh. She wasn’t used to someone wanting to talk to her, let alone a big fancy singer who she’d just met. Still-it was nice that there was someone other than Amethyst who apparently wanted her company.

 

**_hey uh_ **

 

**_yeah_ **

 

**_it’s been kind of a rough day and im still shaking off how pissed i was earlier_ **

 

**_so talking to me may not be the best thing_ **

 

_Oh no, did...what happened? Are you alright?_

 

**_yeah im plenty fine i just need a while to get over it_ **

 

**_always do_ **

 

_Always? You have bad days often?_

 

**_lets just say that me and fury aren’t exactly strangers_ **

 

**_listen im still kind of hot and i dont want to lash out or anything so maybe we should just talk later or something_ **

 

A few minutes, than another ping. Ruby sighed in frustration, before being taken aback at Sapphire’s reply.

 

_Can I help somehow?_

 

This again. Why did she care so much...? They had only just met. It didn’t make any sense. Taking a deep breath and trying to push back down any of the remaining embers, Ruby typed back.

 

**_how do you think you could help_ **

 

_I don’t know. I don’t even know what the problem is._

 

**_you havent got the time for me arent you too busy with superstar stuff to listen to me rambling_ **

 

_I’m pretty patient. Try me out._

 

**_alright so i guess im a goddamn nuisance in class or something_ **

 

**_this girl i’ve never even seen before-Pearl, I guess-came up and started getting shouty with me, saying that i was a problem or something._ **

 

**_i broke a pencil and youd think id just stabbed this woman. said something like anything that bothers our teacher is her business. i just dont get what her problem was!_ **

 

**_i didnt even DO ANYTHING! AND THEN SHE GETS TO COME UP AND RANT AT ME LIKE I STARTED IT! If there’s one thing I hate, it’s people involving themselves in business that isn’t theirs._ **

 

_What happened in class that got her so worked up? Why’d you break the pencil?_

 

Ruby deflated, her building anger being replaced with embarrassment. It felt a little bit like Sapphire was judging her here. She couldn’t tell her the truth.

 

_**it was nothing** _

 

_**an accident you know those happen a lot i guess i just wasnt paying attention** _

 

**_when the pencil snapped i shouted and i guess thats what this girl was yelling at me for???_ **

 

**_because the teacher stopped the lecture just to ask if i was okay_ **

 

_Were you? The teacher sounds like a saint._

 

**_Rose Universe-Quartz is a gift to the school system but thats not what im on about right now_ **

 

_Okay._

 

**_i just lost track of my mind and i wasnt paying attention. its not my fault pencils cant handle these muscles_ **

 

_Are you a bodybuilder or something?_

 

**_i want you to imagine me as absolutely stacked with muscle and that’s me_ **

 

**_im also very tall remember that_ **

 

_It seems important, I’ll write it down. Ruby...Very strong, very tall. Angry a lot._

 

**_correct_ **

 

_Now that we’ve committed you to the books, what was distracting you so much to start with?_

 

Ruby’s cheeks flushed and her heart dropped a little. She had only just started to feel better by joking with Sapphire. She couldn’t tell her that she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Sapphire, and she couldn’t tell her that she was confused at why Sapphire cared so much. She’d think it was all her fault Ruby got in the shit.

 

_**it was nothing and we’re leaving it at that** _

 

_**i was thinking and i was thinking really hard about nothing alright** _

 

_You’re...Alright. I’m sorry for probing._

 

_**no its fine** _

 

_**its kind of nice to have someone to actually talk to** _

 

**_my roomate is just kind of like a rock when it comes to stuff like this_ **

 

_She didn’t try to help?_

 

_**she did by asking if i punched Pearl and then by giving reassurement that sounded very much like she was calling a hit on Pearl** _

 

Oh dear.

 

_**yeah that’s appropriate** _

 

_**amy’s pretty rough but that works with me** _

 

_**because like i said** _

 

_**very tall and full of muscles and anger** _

 

When it came to lying, Ruby was a master of the craft.

 

_I must be pretty boring to you then, I predict._

 

_**no actually its nice having someone to talk to like this** _

 

_**nobodys cared to ask how ive been in a long time haha** _

 

_**well weve definitely talked a lot about me** _

 

_**lemme hear about you miss psych evaluation** _

 

_Me?_

 

_**you being the other person in this conversation, yeah** _

 

_You don’t want to hear about me. I’m pretty boring._

 

**_thats no fair you cant just have me spill my day and then say nothing gimme something here_ **

 

There was a pause. It was only about five minutes, but it felt like an hour.

 

_Okay, sure. What do you want to know?_


	4. me.jpg

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby and Sapphire finally get an idea of what the other looks like, and Sapphire sends over a gift.

Ruby didn’t expect Sapphire to ask what she wanted to know. She’d thought that Sapphire would just start talking-that’s what she would do, anyway. But now she had to think out what she didn’t know about her...which, to be fair, was everything.

 

Everything was a good baseline. Ruby decided to move on from there.

 

**_you! well i mean, i guess i just want to know who im talking to. we’re still pretty much strangers, you know?_ **

 

_Well, uh..._

 

_I’m pretty short, actually. I don’t have a ton in the way of muscle, you know? I really like occult stuff..._

 

**_uh_ **

 

**_occult?_ **

 

_Yeah, you know. Tarot cards and future divination and stuff. It’s fun to guess at the future!_

 

**_oh yeah_ **

 

**_i mean that’s not much for me_ **

 

**_i way prefer not knowing because then it’s all a surprise_ **

 

_Well it can’t be THAT specific. But it can tell you where you might end up. Getting there is the mystery, but knowing is the fun!_

 

**_if you say so miss future vision_ **

 

_I like that. I sound like a superhero. Miss Future Vision!_

 

**_saving the day before she knew she needed to_ **

 

_With my strong partner, Muscle Girl!_

 

Ruby guffawed. Sapphire may play it up all mysterious and proper, but she was definitely a giant dork. Which was fine, because giant dorks make the best friends.

 

**_alright youve got me roped in now that name is incredible_ **

 

_I know! The future told me you’d love it._

 

_**well i’m gonna need more details about Miss Future Vision soon** _

 

_**the looks the deets you gotta give them** _

 

_Why’s that? Am I not short enough for you?_

 

**_no i’m uh_ **

 

**_it’s nothing i just thought it’d be neat to know who i’m talking to you know_ **

 

_Okay well, uh..._

 

_Like I said, I’m really short. I’m like 5’3? I haven’t gotten to measuring myself in a long time._

 

_Actually...Hang on. I’ve got a better idea._

 

**_alright shoot_ **

 

The conversation stopped, and Ruby found her impatience mounting. She huffed, resting her chin on her palm and tapping the table with her spare fingers. What was Sapphire planning to start with? And why was it taking so long?

 

_Alright, sorry. It took forever to find it because it was buried under everything else. I got it hooked up now, though, should be ready in a minute..._

 

_Here it is!_

 

**_what’ve you got?_ **

 

A notification ticked up inside of the chat window.

 

“>Sapphire has sent a file: me.jpg Click _here_ to download.”

 

Ruby raised an eyebrow and double-clicked on the download link. After a few seconds, the download pinged and the image opened up, and Ruby let out a short gasp.

 

The picture was...not of a great quality. The camera must have been a few years old, give or take. What she could see, though, was a girl about her age, give or take a year.

 

Sapphire’s hair was incredibly long, bushy, and a light blue. It fell over the right side of her face, the curls stopping just short of her mouth. Her skin was a rich, dark tone, and her eye-the only one that she could see, that is-was wide and round, looking right at Ruby and a saturated, dazzling blue, complementing her hair. Her jaw was short and round, and she could see a few earrings catching the light from behind the camera, rings around her earlobe and a small, white stud.

 

All in all, what pulled the picture together the most was the huge smile that Sapphire had put on for the photo. It was gleaming white, and the sight of it made Ruby’s heart skip in her chest.

 

_**oh uh** _

 

_**wow** _

 

_**you’re really pretty** _

 

_Oh, stop. I look awful today. I didn’t even do anything ‘til I tried to set up the camera._

 

**_no seriously you’re way pretty_ **

 

**_im jealous to be honest_ **

 

_Well...thanks. That’s really nice of you to say. You’ve got me blushing now, you!_

 

**_oh yeah im just the worst_ **

 

**_what’re you wearing babe can i have your number_ **

 

_You stop that, you dog!_

 

**_woof woof_ **

 

Ruby hadn’t been lying. Sapphire WAS really pretty. She didn’t think she’d seen a smile quite like that in her life. She might’ve made Sapphire blush with a compliment, but Ruby’s face was a bright red too-not from the anger. Not anymore.

 

_What about you?_

 

**_what about me?_ **

 

_What do you look like! Come on, I took a picture, I gotta get something from you here._

 

_**oh shit uh** _

 

_**yeah i guess you outta know since you just told me** _

 

_**like i said** _

 

_Tall, muscular, and angry._

 

_**you got it** _

 

_**everyone tells me my hair looks like copper, but I don’t really see it** _

 

_**my cheeks are usually red but I swear it’s not because I’m blushing alright i’m just passionate** _

 

_Passionate about blushing so often?_

 

_**LISTEN YOU.** _

 

_I’m sorry Ruby. Please go on._

 

**_hmph_ **

 

_**well uh, I go running and boxing a lot so I’m really into like...tighter clothes** _

 

**_like spandex stuff and leggings_ **

 

_You box?_

 

_**every now and again when I can** _

 

_**i wasn’t kidding you i’m stacked w/ muscle over here** _

 

_You’ll have to let me sit on your biceps._

 

_**damn right i’ll carry you everywhere. all aboard the Ruby Train** _

 

_What about your face?_

 

_**huh** _

 

_What do you look like, silly?_

 

Oh boy.  If there was one thing Ruby hated, it was describing herself.

 

_**oh** _

 

_**well** _

 

_**alright, hang on...** _

 

Ruby was lucky enough to have a camera built into her computer already. She was unlucky enough to have no grasp of camera work-she wasn’t one to take selfies, or even indulge in her looks all too often. She hurried to make her face go pale again, although the best she could do was get them down to their usual cherry glow.

 

It took her about nine tries, and a lot of different positioning, but she managed to get a good picture eventually. She checked it over a last time, just to make sure it was alright. If Sapphire was gonna dazzle like that, Ruby had to show her a thing or two.

 

If anything, she might’ve had Sapphire beaten in the big hair department. Her afro was bigger than her head, framing her face; even accentuating the square of her jaw. Her skin wasn’t as dark as Sapphire’s, and you could see a splash of freckles beneath her eyes and across the bridge of her nose. Her eyes were round, getting narrower at the edges, and a deep, deep brown, almost looking black, but you could still make out her pupils. She had a round, short nose, and beneath that was the toothiest grin she could give, although you could see the two teeth she’d had replaced as a kid.

 

Satisfied enough, she settled back in and sent the file. Sapphire accepted it within moments.

 

_OH MY GOODNESS YOUR LITTLE BUTTON NOSE._

 

**_DO YOU WANNA FIGHT RIGHT NOW_ **

 

_Ruby you are so cute! I love your hair_

 

_You’ve definitely got me beat in the hair department...It’s gorgeous._

 

**_well shit you’re going to make me blush soon enough_ **

 

As if she wasn’t already. Her face had gone pink again the moment she sat back down.

 

_I’m serious! It’s good to know what you look like now...I’m happy I got to see you, I mean._

 

**_i can say the same, really_ **

 

**_im glad i have a face to place you with now haha_ **

 

**_i can definitely say that you’re not familiar_ **

 

**_still don’t get how that happened tbh_ **

 

_Accident’s happen, I guess. I’m glad that one did. Steven’s a sweet kid, and I got to meet you, so it’s not too bad._

 

_Hey, listen, I gotta go...Manager’s don’t take ‘I’m talking with my internet friend” as an excuse. But here, uh, so you don’t have to stick to the computer..._

 

Ruby blinked in confusion before the next message popped on the screen. She grinned widely, pulling out her phone as quick as she could manage.

 

Sapphire had given her a phone number.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, we get an idea of who we're reading about. That didn't take me forever to come out with at all! The next chapter may take some time. I'm trying to think out where to take it, so it may be a while. otherwise, enjoy!


	5. Donut Boys make for Good Contacts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst heads out on a couple errands, getting in touch with a certain friend of hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Originally, this was going to be one long-ass chapter, but for the sake of time I split it up into two. The second half will come before long, but for now, have Amethyst's adventures downtown!)

All in all, Amethyst was having an okay morning. In all fairness, however, she had only just woken up. Sure, for others, it was an afternoon, or lunchtime, or some other denotation. That was completely meaningless, however, when you’re Amethyst. When you’re Amethyst, you wake up at 1:30 or so come hell or highwater. She’d woken up with her sheets still on her bed, which was a plus, and Ruby was in a much happier mood than the last time she’d seen her, which was a bigger plus. For all her tough girl persona, Amethyst frequently betrayed the notion that her friends weren’t important to her by accidentally caring about them a lot.

 

She groaned, rolling to face the ceiling. Ruby, propped at her desk and excitedly tapping at her phone, didn’t spare a blink at her. Amethyst groaning wasn’t unusual. Amethyst waking up at 1:30 wasn’t unusual, either, and Ruby kept on, peppering her phone with gentle taps from her thumbs. Sitting up, Amethyst rubbed the sleep from her eye with one fist, surprised that Ruby was still present to begin with. In the three years that they had been roomates, Amethyst had not seen a force, alive or otherwise, that could keep the girl tethered down.

 

“Looks like someone’s in higher spirits, huh?” she asked, managing to sit herself up to spare the extreme likelihood of falling back asleep and propping herself on one elbow, the eye not hidden behind a mass of purple-gray hair peering at her roommate. She let out a yawn, covering her mouth with her spare hand. “Don’t you usually have class? Or jogging? Or...Iunno, Ruby stuff?”

 

Amethyst didn’t get much of an answer; Ruby’s phone vibrated as soon as she’d finished asking, and Ruby pulled it back out from the depths of her jogging shorts, looking at the screen for a moment before resuming her hammering of the screen with her thumbs. Amethyst yawned again, and Ruby glanced up at her, a smile on her face.

 

There was an awkward pause, and then Ruby jumped in her seat. “S-Sorry, what? Oh!” Ruby exclaimed, surprised. “Uh, yeah...Class got cancelled earlier. Woke up early for the run, and...there-we got an email that Miss Quarts-Universe couldn’t make it again. Something about stomach problems, I think?” Ruby had only heard Amethyst’s questions as an afterthought, and the girl’s sudden transition from complete unconsciousness to half-baked awareness had caught her off-guard.

 

All in all, Ruby did essentially nothing to sell it. “Sick?” Amethyst asked, graciously being the accepting-bullshit type of girl. Her head weighed a little heavier into her palm as she let out another yawn. “Shit, I hope she’s alright. That woman’s too good for the student body for her to be out longer than a day,” Amethyst decided, sitting up and stretching her arms out. “How long you been up then, huh, Ruby boobies?” She giggled at her own nickname. Amethyst was the best comedian that she knew, and the only one she needed to.

 

A blush covered Ruby’s face and she crossed her arms, keeping her phone pinched in her left hand. “Hey, what’re you trying to say?” Her embarrassment awarded her with a cocked eyebrow from Amethyst, and the response, “It’s just a nickname, girl, no sweat. How long you been clocking it?”

 

Ruby looked to the side. “Uh, six AM.”

 

Amethyst let out a heavy sigh, almost slumping. “Jesus. How do you do it? I barely got it in me to fall asleep by the time you’re heading for a run.”

 

Ruby laughed, shrugging. “It’s in the genes, I guess. You can’t keep the Q family down. You should see my house on Kwanzaa and we’re all under the same roof...” She lead off, taking another glance at her phone, a flicker of a frown brushing her cheeks. It hadn’t vibrated since she’d started talking to Amethyst.

 

“I can’t even imagine that, man. Been my mom and I since I was a kid. I think I took every bit of chill in her with me when I popped out.” Amethyst replied, miming her birth with a flick of her finger. “Swear to god, that woman could level a radio tower.”

 

“Maybe when you’ll get older you’ll light up like that? I don’t know,” Ruby offered, not sure if Amethyst was looking for support or disbelief.

 

“Nope!” Amethyst fell back on her bed, arm’s spread. “It’s a trashbag life for me. You gotta commit to these sorta things, R.”

 

Ruby laughed and offered a “yeah,” and the room resumed it’s silence once again, broken by the sound of Ruby’s once again insistent texting. Amethyst sighed contently, letting the silence sit for another moment before breaching a subject that had been bothering her for a half-week.

 

“Hey, ‘Rube?” Amethyst offered, not budging from her spot on her bed.

 

“Yeah?” Ruby replied, eyes still focused on her phone.

 

“You know anything about that girl from your class? The one who chewed you out.”

 

“Huh? Oh. That.” Ruby said, her voice getting a spot of irritation, having gotten away from thinking about it. “No, All I know is that her name was Pearl, and she must be a geology minor or something if we were in the same class.”

 

“Hm.” Came Amethyst’s reply. She sounded less tired, and more...introspective. Plotting.

 

After a moment, it was Ruby’s turn.

 

“Amy?” She asked.

 

“Yeah?”

 

“You aren’t gonna call a hit on my classmate, are you?” Ruby asked, an edge of real worry in her voice. She knew and trusted Amethyst, but she also knew enough that the lazier the person, the smarter they were, and Amethyst had to be reaching supercomputer.

 

For her trouble, she got a loud snort and chuckles from Amethyst, who sat up with a grin. “Chill, chill. Nobody’s gonna get a hit called on ‘em. You can relax, alright? It’s in Amethysts hands.”

 

“That-I’m more worried now,” Ruby said, one eyebrow cautiously raised at her roomate.

 

“Nah, for real. I got it handled, don’t sweat about Pearl.” She stood up, slipping her feet into her sandals. “I got stuff to do, anyway. Don’t burn down the house while I’m out, alright?” Surprisingly, Amethyst had already made it to the door.

 

“On a Friday? When do you ever do stuff on a Friday?” Ruby asked, genuinely confused to the point that she didn’t turn her head when her phone buzzed.

 

“When I gotta go make a hit on someone. They don’t come cheap, R!”

 

By the time she heard Ruby’s frustrated call of her name, she was out in the hall, pulling out her phone and chuckling to herself while she jot down a text to someone. She wasn’t going to hire a hitman, that’s for sure, but she knew how to get her hands on what she wanted when it came to people.

 

_[Sent 1:53} To: Donutboy_

 

_Sup_

 

_{Received 1:54}_

 

_oh, fuck._

 

 

Amethyst burst into a big, toothy grin.

 

_{Sent 1:54}_

 

_Chill, I just need some help_

 

_{Received, 1:54}_

 

_what is it now? I’m on shift._

 

A shift was good news; she knew where to track him down, at least. Couldn’t be going better, far as she was concerned.

 

_[Sent 1:55]_

 

_Cool omw_

 

_{Received 1:56]_

 

_this sounds illegal. why do you only ever do illegal shit when i can’t get in on it?_

 

_{Sent 1:57}_

 

_It’s totally legal. I just need some info, dig?_

 

Didn’t matter much to Amethyst one way or the other if he dug or not. She already had a plan laid out, and she knew how to get it done. She was already halfway to the Big Donut anyway; she formed the rest of her plan while she stared out the window, looking over the town as the local tram shuffled it’s way downtown.

 

She stepped out of the tram, stretching out her limbs and popping open the door with a characteristic yawn. The Big Donut was nice; it wasn’t a chain place, which automatically meant the food tasted better for Amethyst. Even if that food was just doughnuts, and even if she would eat as she liked. She was a woman of standards. High standards, that deviated when she chose they did. Which was often.

 

“Afternoon, guys!” She exclaimed with a wave, to the trio of tired teens clearly using the buildings coffee as a replacement for a good nights sleep, as well as to the pair of tired college students (well, one student, one dropout) behind the table.

 

“Sup, ‘Amy,” came a low call from the table, the eternally steady Buck Dewey adjusting his glasses as a greeting. Buck was still pretty young, but he was doing his best to be mature lately. Nobody had seen his eyes, or heard him shout, in weeks.

 

Behind the counter, another greeting piped up. “Amethyst!” Sadie shouted happily, busy at the fryer. She threw up a hand to wave, keeping the other busy at the fryer. They didn’t talk much, but Sadie was always a kind soul. Amethyst could never really understand what she saw in...

 

“Of COURSE you just show up.” A boy of about Amethyst’s age who more resembled a stick of beef jerky with huge gauges stood behind the register. Lars was a typical sourpuss, and he was sporting it in good fashion today. He crossed his arms, working to scowl even further at her.

 

Amethyst laughed, leaning an arm against the table. Go-time. Lars was easy to play if you knew him well enough; he played it up sour mostly because he was sour, but Amethyst knew a weakness or two.

 

“A gal can’t see her two pals and get a fresh Boston creme and coffee for here?” She asked, flashing a smile. Lars scoffed and rolled his eyes, turning around to grab the pastry anyway. Sadie popped a smile for her as she passed by, trying to idly converse about college while she was filling up a quick cup of coffee for Amethyst. Lars rung her up, muttering out little mocking chirps of Amethyst’s replies. He slid the donut over to Amethyst quickly, propping his head on his palm. and tapping his finger.

 

“Hey, Lars, how’s about a lunch break?” Amethyst said, picking up her order and nudging her head at a table next to the window.

 

“Seriously? I can’t just go on break. I’m working.” Lars said, doing nothing of the sort.

 

“Oh, hush.” Sadie said, giggling and popping her hip against Lars’. “Amethyst’ll be done in like, ten minutes. Not like I don’t already do your work anyway. Go ahead.”

 

“I-I don’t even have anything to eat!” He offered, already having lost.

 

“Lunch is in the fridge,” Sadie chimed, pointing to the back.

 

Lars let out a noise somewhere between a grunt and a huff, but stepped back and grabbed his lunch anyway. Amethyst smiled and reclined in her seat, resting her feet up under the table.

 

Lars plopped across from her and rubbed his eyes as she bit into her donut. “Alright, Amethyst, what is it this time? I’m not taking the fall for anything again,” he said, jabbing a finger at her as he bit into an egg-salad sandwich.

 

“Chill, chill. This is something you can actually DO.” She said, swallowing mouthfuls of pastry. “I just need you to keep your eyes out for a while.”

 

There was a pause. Lars squinted, his finger still pointed to her.

 

“You’re calling a hit?”

 

“God, cut it!” Amethyst said, leaning forward. “Listen up. There’s this gal that’s been messin around with Rube, and I gotta get in touch with her, you know what I mean? I just need you to, I dunno, head-search for a while. You can do it while you work!” She said, motioning to the counter.

 

“No way. I’m not gonna be your lackey for some...assault thing that you’re gonna pull,” he said, crossing his arms again and scowling at her.

 

“It’s not an assault thing! Listen, whoever this gal is, she really upset Ruby, and I just wanna talk to her about it. I’m not gonna start out swingin. I just need to find her.” She leaned forward, shuffling an arm under her bust as she did and smiling. “I mean, come on. Why else would I talk to you for this? Nobody knows people like you do.”

 

He paused, uncrossing his arms slowly. “You don’t mean that.”

 

“I do. C’mon, it won’t put you out or anything.” She did. Lars was a dick, but in the end, he was still kind of a kid. He just wanted to be popular, and he had a tendancy to people-watch because of that. It did help that he had a thing for pretty girls that she could use, but she really had thought of him first for this.

 

There was another pause. Lars breathed in through his nose, then let out a sigh into his sandwich. “Alright, fine. I’ll...keep an eye out. You know anything about her?” He asked, lifting his eyes up to her.

 

She grinned and clapped his arm, an effort that rewarded her with a muffled “ow,” from Lars. “All I got is her name is Pearl, and she’s way tall. That’s about it. She’s got to live here, or around, at least. Oh! Rube goes to university with her.”

 

“Oh, yeah, girls are never tall or named Pearl. I’ll keep an eye out.” He replied, rolling his eyes. Amethyst laughed and clapped him on the arm again-which got her a “stop that!” this time-and picked up her coffee. “You’re a peach, buddy. Glad we could chat!”

 

“Hey! You owe me, ‘member that.” He said over his shoulder, trying to catch her before she left.

 

“Mhm! Yeah, I’ll be right on that!” She said, letting the door swing closed behind her as she sipped her coffee. Now it was time to play the waiting game.

 


	6. Burger Booth Confessionals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby and Amethyst go out on a lunch date, and Amethyst badgers a confession from Ruby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Here's that second half as promised! Enjoy!)

Amethyst could be honest with herself; it made her damn proud to get things done. Something she should put her energy to more often. As the bus retraced it’s path back to her dorm building, she remembered that rewarding yourself is the best part of any major accomplishment.

 

“’Rube!” She shouted, almost throwing open the door to their dorm. Ruby was...laying in bed, another strange turn of events, still busy on her phone, her laptop open and next to her. “What are you up to today!?”

 

“Amethyst? I was surprised, you usually knock until I come answer.”

 

“Yeah? And you usually don’t lay down so much.” Amethyst pushed Ruby in her spot, Ruby letting out a huff.

 

“Yeah, well, I’m up to stuff!”

 

“What kind of stuff?”

 

“Stuff stuff.”

 

“Stuff can’t go get a burger with your bestie stuff?”

 

Ruby paused. Amethyst paused. For a few seconds, they were both very paused.

 

“Are you buying?”

“Duh.”

  
“Nah, I can get a burger over this stuff.” Ruby said, sitting up and shuffling her feet into some horribly beaten up running shoes. They were a gift from Amethyst just a year ago, and they had already been well and beyond ‘used’, but Ruby wasn’t one to throw things away if they still fit.

 

“So what did you head out earlier for? You barely leave the room before three.” Ruby asked, pocketing her phone.

“I told you, man, I had to call in a hit. You know how it is.”

 

“Amethyst, stop-”

 

“I’m tellin you, chill. It wasn’t anything big, alright? Just somethin’ I had to get done sooner rather than later.”

 

Ruby huffed. If there was one thing she hated, it was secrets being kept from her. “Amethyst, if this comes back to bite you, I’m gonna be dealin’ with it, aren’t I? I don’t want to be pickin’ up whatevers left from whatever problem, especially if it’s not MY-”

 

“Rube cube. You gotta cut it. It’s fine, alright? It won’t return to bite you. If anything is coming back, it’s gotta come back to me. Alright?”

 

Ruby breathed in, and soon after, very tensely breathed out. “Yeah, okay. Sorry, Amy.”

 

“All good, eh? Come on.” Amethyst pat her on the back. “Let’s forget about that and get these burgers, yeah?” She jerked her head in the direction of Beach Citywalk Fries.

 

“Don’t you figure you’re supposed to come here for the fries?”

 

“Mm,” Amethyst turned her head back to Ruby. “They’re only good if you show up at the end of the day. The kid running the friers usually gives you the leftovers if you ask nicely enough.”

 

“You...eat leftover fry bits?”

 

Amethyst shrugged and grinned. “You sound like you haven’t eaten enough leftover fry bits.”

 

Ruby gave her that much, admitting she didn’t usually spring for fast food anyway. By the time they had managed their way to getting their food, though, her appetite was more than enough to call in a burger.

 

Unwrapping her own, Amethyst took a small bite, for once. If Ruby was watching, she’d have become suspicious. It wasn’t unusual for her to finish larger meals in about two bites; the woman was a human depository for food.

 

Ruby wasn’t watching, though, she was busy carefully pulling the tomatoes out of her burger.

 

“So what’s all this about your phone, Rube?”

 

Ruby tilted her head up, looking away from her burger and to her friend. “Huh?”

 

Amethyst leaned across the table, half-chewing her cheekful of burger.

 

“You heard me, girl. You having phone troubles or somethin, lately? I’ve never seen you peek at that thing so often. I’ve barely even seen you use it for calling anyone, and now you’re obsessed with it! What gives?”

 

Ruby coughed, pulling out her tomatoes and finally able to get to work on her burger. “Uh, yeah, that’s what it is,” she said, “I’ve been having pretty bad phone troubles over the last few days.”

 

There was a pause while Amethyst raised an eyebrow at Ruby. Amethyst was always good at picking up lies; once she knew you well enough, she knew how you lied. This was compounded by the fact that Ruby was a terrible liar, and couldn’t stop the nervous shake in her voice she always had when she tried to lie.

 

“Okay, so why have you been looking at your phone more and more in the last two weeks, then?”

 

Ruby coughed into her burger.

  
“C’mon, Rubix Cube, at least gimme the truth if you’re gonna totally flip on me.”

 

Ruby sighed,shaking the nerves out of her head and finished her bite. Then, she finally worked it out.

 

“You, uh...you know that party invite, two weeks back?”

 

“The secret santa one? Shit, right. That’s coming up, isn’t it?”

 

Ruby rose an eyebrow. Shit, that’s right, it was; there was only a week before they got out for winter break, and then two weeks of nothing until the party, just before Christmas.

 

“Yeah, yeah, that one.”

 

“You had some stranger as your partner, right?”

 

Ruby nodded. “It...her name is Sapphire, remember?”

 

“Mm.”

 

“Well, she...I guess we kind of hit it off?” Ruby was nervous now, thinking back on their first conversation. She stumbled over her words a lot. Who was she kidding-she still did. Sapphire had that kind of effect on her, she was just so unrelentingly polite and humble that it floored her.

 

This got Amethyst interested. “Dude, have you been blowin’ me off to flirt for the last couple weeks?”

 

“What!? No! It’s not...It’s not flirting! We’ve just been talking, that’s all.”

 

“Yeah? About what? Come on, what’s she like?”

 

Ruby giggled a bit, then scratched her cheek. “She...uh, she’s like, a total celebrity apparently? Like we found that out the first day, that she’s famous for her music and stuff. But she doesn’t make any public appearances, I guess? All her album art and professional appearances are just art or voice-only.”

 

“So you don’t know what she looks like?”

 

A little smile popped onto Ruby’s face. She blushed a little, looking back at her burger. “Uh, no, I know what she looks like. She was really forward about that, actually. One day we just kind of...sent each other selfies.”

 

“Is she c-”

 

“She’s gorgeous, Amy!” Ruby cut her off in enthusiasm. “She has this huge blue hair, and her face looks really soft and cute. And the jewelry she wears could pay our rent!” Her hand lifted in front of her. “For three months! And her smile was...it was, like, a smile to be jealous of, you know?”

 

Amethyst had gone from listening to resting her chin on her hand, a knowing eyebrow lifted. “Uh-huh.”

 

“She’s the nicest person I’ve ever met, too! I’ve gotten mad like, three times in the last week? And I talk to her, and it’s like..it’s like...It just goes away, you know?” Ruby’s face was red now. “She’s really patient, and she speaks with this perfect grammar in her typing. It makes me feel like a square most of the time, but I can’t help it. Talking to her helps everything.” She rested her chin in both of her palms, groaning.

 

Amethyst giggled. “Dude.”

 

Ruby looked up, eyebrow raised. “What?”

“If you had a crush any bigger than that, you’d be getting married next month.”

 

“Shut uuuuup,” Ruby said, into her hands.

 

Amethyst giggled, getting down to the last fourth of her burger. “So, like, have you talked to her at all? Do you know what she sounds like or anything?”

 

“She can’t make calls that often because she’s always working,” Ruby said, propping her head back up. “But I’ve listened to some of her music.”

 

“And?”

 

“Amy, it’s even better than her face.”

 

Amethyst giggled again, watching Ruby collect herself and get back to her burger as well.

 

She stood up, wrapping up the foil her burger came in, and let out a burp. “Well, you better get used to her being around, shouldn’t you?”

 

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked, getting up, her own burger in hand. “She lives way south of here.”

 

“Yeah,” Amethyst said, tossing out the foil, “But you’re gonna see her at the party end of next month, aren’t you?”

 

And that’s when Ruby’s nerves dropped into her stomach.


	7. Ruby has anxiety, Amethyst has advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby reflects on her social history, and comes to a conclusion. Thankfully, Amethyst is there to tell her its a bad conclusion.

"Next-Next month!?"

"That's when the party is, ain't it? She's coming, so you're gonna get to see her for once."

Ruby had gone red. "That's-I'm-thats so close! She can't see me next month!"

"Tone it down, girl, what's the issue. Walk and talk with me." Amethyst held the door open for her, half-lidded eyes urging ruby to chill.

"What do you mean what's the issue!? Look at me! I'm the issue!" Ruby motioned to herself, throwing her arms in the air. "Im-shes gonna see me and she's gonna laugh at me, or not want to have anything to do with me. I can't even hide! She knows what I look like!"

"The hell'd she do that for, Rube? You're overreacting. The gal already likes you, and you clearly got a thing for her. Didn't crushes stop being a thing to be embarrassed about after your first date?"

Ruby covered her face and groaned. "Amethyst..."

"Ruby."

"I've. You know, I haven't...I mean, I had crushes before, but I've never-I mean, I haven't..."

"No way."

Ruby pulled her face up from behind her hands enough to level her eyes at Amethyst, and nodded tersely.

"Dude, what? You've never been on a date!?". Amethyst sounded shocked, but she was also clearly restraining giggles. The answer to her question was a prolonged, frustrated groan from Ruby's hands.

Amethyst let out a guffaw. "Oh, man, don't worry. She's gonna love you! It's just like having a friend, but way closer. Plus, like I said, she's gonna love you."

"There's no way. I should just die instead. Dying instead sounds good. Just in time for the holidays and everything."

Amethyst held the door to their dorm building open for her, calling an elevator with a thumb. "Cmon, cheer up. If people don't like you, they don't like you. Fuck em. That's how I do it."

"I'm not you, though, Amy! I can't just...Do that.". Ruby slumped a little, frustrated. Amethyst Pat her on the back.

"It'll turn out alright, alright? She's gonna like you. You know why?"

"My winning personality?" Ruby offered, weakly.

"Because you love heeeeer," Amethyst sing-songed, reaching an arm around Ruby and tickling her as their elevator doors opened. Ruby shrieked and giggled, practically flying out of the elevator car. Amethyst followed suit, chiming that Ruby loved Sapphire, as Ruby scrambled and opened the door, throwing herself in her bed to protect from Amethysts attack.

Amethyst say down on her bed in short order, giggling breathlessly herself. "But hey, if you're so worried about it-why don't you just, I dunno, talk to her?"

"Oh yeah, sure. 'Hey there, I know we're going to meet next month, but I'm so relentlessly gay the thought of seeing you terrifies me. Help out please!' that'll sound great."

"Well, don't lead with that. Just talk about the party and when she's coming in and junk. It'll make it more of an event to look forward to."

"I mean...If it'll take the edge off, it's worth a try, I guess." Ruby sighed, reluctantly grabbing her laptop and flipping it open.

She opened her chatlog with Sapphire, a few days old at this point. Once they could text each other, it became their main mode of gushing about everything to each other. Meanwhile, in the chatlog, Sapphire had wrapped up explaining how the method of tarot reading she used works when her manager had come by again, and she'd had to hop off once more.

Swallowing heavily, Ruby typed in a new message.

**hey so uh**   
**next month**   
**you know?**

Ruby dumped her chin into her hand, awaiting a reply. Within seconds, there was a persistent tapping, Ruby's impatient finger insistently thumping hard against the desk. Beneath the desk, her leg bounced in tempo with her finger.

"Girl."

Ruby snapped out of focus, blinking at Amethyst like it was the first time they'd met. "What? What?" She said, more confused than irritated.

"You're drivin' yourself nuts. Talk to me." Amethyst lowered a previously raised eyebrow, setting aside her copy of KBCW Magazine.

Ruby blinked. "I...I already did, Amethyst. It didn't really help. I’m just thinking more about...How she could hate me. And she probably will!" She took a deep inhale, quiver obvious in the sound.

Amethyst rolled back over, her tone changing a little. Something really mattered to her in this conversation. “What makes you say that?” She said, trying to keep some new element in her voice down.

Ruby was silent, and then let out a heavy sigh. “I just...don’t want to mess up meeting her, y’know? What if she hates me? I-I like people, but man, they just...they don’t like me a lot, y’know? She might just be another case.” Ruby bit her lip, staring past Amethyst.

Amethyst shut off the tv, turning her angle so she was propped up on one arm, facing Ruby. “She been talkin’ to you ever since our lunch date?” She said, jabbing her finger at Ruby.

This pulled her out enough to focus back on Amethyst. “Uh, yeah, wh-”

Amethyst cut her off, the edge in her voice back. “She’s gonna like you, Ruby. And fuck ‘er if she doesn’t.”

Ruby sighed again, big and heavy. “That’s easy for you to say, though. You don’t care what anyone thinks.” She couldn’t hear Amethyst’s sharp inhale past her slumping into the chair next to her. “And you keep saying that she’ll like me, and I think she has before, but...I just don’t know. I’m afraid I’ll mess up again.”

Amethyst sighed. “Listen, Rube.” And there’s the nickname again. “You like this girl, she likes you. She’s talkin to you because she wants to, and when you see her, she’s gonna hang out with you because she wants to. But you can’t doubt yourself like that, alright? When you start doin that, it’s just settin yourself up to fail. You got it?” Amethyst had sat up, complete sincerity filling her voice for once.

Ruby let a weak smile to her face. “I...I gotta try. Yeah, you’re right...Thanks, Amethyst.”

Amethyst shrugged. “I’m a miracle worker, what am I gonna tell ya?” Before long, she turned, getting back to her crying, her breakfast, and most importantly, her friends. “Keep talking to me, though.”

“I don’t really know what to say. I mean, I already sent her the text, what more could I-”

"Not about that, dude. Talk to me about something else. Anything else. How fast you run a mile?"

Ruby raised an eyebrow, confused. "Uh...Last I ran, 6:45. What for?"

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Jesus, dude, you ever slow it down? They made us run track in high school. You know what time I got for the mile?"

"Ten minutes?"

"Trick question. I never finished." She laughed out loud, a half-cackle. "I never gave a shit, so I just walked the thing. Even at that rate, class ended before I was done."

"How slow did you walk!?"

"Slow as I wanted to. What were they gonna do, stop me and make me take longer?" Amethyst snorted. "What made you wanna be a geologist, anyhow?"

Ruby paused, thinking. "I dunno. I didn't really consider much else. Growing up here, I lived real close to the cliffs, so I'd always see all the pebbles and shells at low tide. I always wanted to collect all of em, cause they were gorgeous. Rocks just...ended up being my thing."

"Clearly. All of your buds are named after gemstones, you ever catch on to that?"

A heavy silence filled the room for a second.

"Man, that is kind of ubiquitous, isn't it? Maybe it's a beach city thing."

"Dunno man, mom never named me."

"Dad name you?"

"Dunno who named me. Growing up in an orphanage makes it a little hard to figure that part out."

There was an almost tense silence in the room. Then Ruby snorted, shaking her head. "Still dunno how you do that."

"Do what?"

"You just say stuff, so casually, that should be like, major childhood deals. If anyone knew all my personal thoughts and issues? Just kill me now."

Amethyst shrugged. "What people know doesn't bother me that much, that's all."

Ruby replied with a "hm." And silence fell back in the room. This was comfier, though, less stress tinged than before. “Still don’t know how,” she muttered.

"So," Ruby said after some minutes, "you just didn't bother to finish the mile?"

"Nope. Never." Came a reply from underneath a pile of blanket and pillow formerly known as Amethyst.

"But you never got in trouble?"

"That's the thing about being short and loud most of the time. If you hush up you can get away with pretty much anything!" Amethyst snapped her fingers and pointed at her, an arm extending from her pile. "'Member that one."

Ruby grinned. "You tryin'a say somethin' about me?"

Amethyst shrugged. "I'm sayin' if you n Sapphire need to tuck away somewhere private...Well, rooms open, and I'll definitely leave you be. Quiet enough and everybody else will."

Ruby turned bubblegum pink. "Amethyst! You can't just say it like that!" She buried her face in her hands to Amethysts guffaws, cut through by her saying that she couldn't help herself.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she repeated, straightening up, "you're just always so coy. Makes you fun to mess with."

Ruby furrowed her brow and grinned, gently throwing a pencil at her roommate.

"You're a turd."

"Pretty sure I'm the best."

"Oh yeah? Whys that?"

Amethyst chuckled. "You're not worried anymore."

It hit Ruby. She hadn't thought about Sapphire liking, or hating her since this exchange about jogging and school started. Even now, thinking on it, she felt a bit lighter, like this inevitable worry had become a thing of the past somehow.

"What the hell. How do you do that?"

Amethyst yawned. "I toldja. Means a lot when you quiet down for a while."

Ruby shook her head, only taking a fleeting glance at the laptop. Sapphire had yet to message her back. "Thanks, Amy," she muttered.

But Amethyst was already asleep, gently snoring, leaving Ruby with her decidedly happier thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOO BOY BEEN A WHILE HUH. MY BAD. Senior year of College means busy as heck, so writing time was far and few between. Glad to be updating again though. Should have the next chapter sooner rather than later. See y'all then


	8. Foreshadowing?  The answer is yes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby and Sapphire finally realize something about each other. No, not that. Meanwhile, amethyst's work comes together.

After an hour of daydreaming, Ruby’s phone buzzed. She almost leapt from her chair in surprise, turning her screen on to check.

 

_{Received 1:56]_

 

_Lol, yes, I'm aware of it. Btw, I’ll be online in a minute! ;)_

 

Ruby’s heart melted. Sapphire used emotes. Sapphire said lol. What a gift she had been given.

Nervously, she propped open her laptop, logging back in to Beachnet to stoke up her conversation.

 

**hey Sapphy**

 

_Sapphy? That’s a new one. Do I get to call you Rupphy?_

  
  
**listen here the answer may be of course yes do it all the time but now is not the time for giggles**

 

**now is the time for plans**

 

_Plans? Rupphy, are you pulling wool over my eyes?_

 

**absolutely not I’m not a sheep**

 

**i just wanna get things straight because like**

 

Ruby swallowed her nerves, not sure how the rest of the conversation was going to go. With any luck, Sapphire would at least think about coming.

 

**well it’s not like I’ve been thinking about it but it just occurred to me y’know**

 

**there’s that party at the end of the month you know**

 

_The one at the end of the month?  Oh! The one that Steven set up. Yes, absolutely. What about it?_

 

Ruby bit her lip. Here it was.

 

**are you going?**

 

_I was hoping to, yes. Schedules are hard to clear, especially ones that the careers of several people hinge on._

 

_I’ll be able to come, though. I know that for sure!_

 

Ruby’s stomach dropped with nerves at the same time that her heart lifted with joy. Holy shit, she was going to see Sapphire, wasn’t she? Oh. Sapphire was going to see her for sure now, then.

 

**how do you know?**

 

_Future vision. Plain and simple!_

 

**you and your fortune telling**

 

_;)_

 

She let out a giggle. Ruby still couldn’t take it when Sapphire used emotes. She’s goes and plays it up all royal and intelligent, and then she just turns around and ends up being a goddamn nerd. Ruby loved it.

 

**well that means you’ll be in town right?**

 

_Yeah?_

 

**and I’m going to the party too...**

 

_Oh_

 

It felt like hot acid had been shot right into Ruby’s heart. “Oh”. That was all she warranted? Nonstop talking for weeks, Ruby feeling her heart getting pulled on a string by this stranger, all the giggles and late nights reading chat logs and all Ruby got out of this girl was a damn “Oh”!?

 

All in the space of a second, Ruby felt her face grow hot, and she dimly felt her teeth sink into her lip. God damnit. This whole thing was stupid after all. It was just a party, Sapphire was just a girl. Yeah. Totally. She couldn’t hold back her frustration, though. She knew Sapphire was soft spoken, but she thought that maybe she was worth more than a syllable-

 

But then.

 

_OH. Oh! Oh my goodness!_

 

_Ruby!_

 

_We’re going to see each other aren’t we!?_

 

Ruby was this close to smacking herself. She let out a sigh of relief, rubbing her arms to cool down from her spiral. It took her a couple minutes to compose herself enough to get back to typing.

 

_Ruby?_

 

**yeah no hi hello still here sorry**

 

**but about seeing each other**

 

**well**

 

**i figured so if we’re at the same party dummy!!!**

 

_Premeditation didn’t say anything about this!_

 

_I didn’t even think about if you were going! I totally forgot!_

 

Ruby giggled, happy to see that Sapphire, at the very least, wanted to meet her too. Her hands were shaking already; not unusual, although it was the first time in years that the cause had been nerves.

 

_And I have two weeks to get ready!? There’s so much to do, though!_

 

**you’re telling me!? i gotta get ready too you know!! i’ve been sweating about this since last night! i ain’t even got a gift yet!!!!!!**

 

_Well, don’t worry about that, it’s a great one!_

 

**you already know what i got you!? i haven’t even gotten it yet!!!!!!**

 

_Oh, I don’t know it exactly. But I know it’s great!_

 

**so what, you know that stuff will happen, but you don’t know all about it right away??**

 

_It’s not like that! It’s like...it lets me know that certain things can and will happen sooner or later. Like earlier, I saw me being really excited, but I didn’t get to see what for._

 

**that sounds really frustrating more than it is helpful**

 

_It lets me get ready for certain things to happen, at least. And for you to take your gift shopping seriously._

 

**i AM going to take it seriously!**

 

_I know._

 

Ruby huffed. For how smart and perfect Sapphire was, she had a real cold shoulder to some things.

 

_It’s good, though. Thank you for talking to me about the party. It definitely helped sort out some of the visions..._

 

**oh yeah?**

 

_Yeah. Now I can at least place one that was really giving me some trouble._

 

**Well**

 

**Do you w **ann **a t **alk **about it********?**

 

“Rubix Cube!”

 

“Wha-!?” Ruby jumped, looking over to Amethyst. “What, what? Why’re you shouting!?”

 

Amethyst threw her arms up in the air. “I’ve been shoutin for the last like, three minutes, dude! I’ve been saying, I gotta borrow you for a few minutes. Maybe like half an hour.” Amethyst paused. “Alright, possibly an hour, whatever. That’s on you. Either way, we gotta go!” She was already dressed and ready, which to Ruby was a sign that she was serious.

 

“Go where!?” Ruby said, one hand on her keyboard, the other swept in confusion in front of her. On her screen, Sapphire’s chat icon hadn’t blipped; she had yet to say anything about her vision.

 

“Don’t sweat the commute, dude, it’s on campus. We only have like, ten minutes, though! Stop slackin’! Just tell her be right back or somethin’.”

 

“You can’t do be right back, that’s if you’ll be back in like, ten minutes.”

 

Amethyst let out a stressed huff. “Well then, say bye!” She almost shouted.

 

Ruby winced; Amethyst never yelled. This must be serious, but...“But I want to come back!”

 

“Then say be right back!”

 

“There’s _nuance_ to these things, Amy!”

 

With an “ _ugh_ ”, Amethyst insisted that she figure it out and be on her way. Turning back to the keyboard, Ruby asked Sapphire to hold on that thought for now.

 

**i’ll be right back, except not right back, like, i’ll be back later on in like an hour or something maybe?**

 

The reply came instantly.

 

_Sure! Have fun._

 

With that, Ruby let out an exasperated sigh and swept out to the elevators with Amethyst.

The elevators weren’t a hassle because of the building. The dorms only had a few floors as it was, and beneath that it was all classrooms; on weekends it was nearly instant travel between floors, just like it should be. The problem was weekdays, and the size of their class, along with everyone needing to get somewhere sometime. The conditions ended up more than cramped, and you often ended up traveling packed in like sardines. Thankfully, it was freshly Saturday, and Ruby and Amethyst were awarded for existing on a weekend by an empty elevator.

Ruby slumped back against the wall of the elevator, putting her hands up in confusion. “Alright, Amy, you’re acting really weird, and it’s starting to get to me. Hurry up and let me know what’s going on!” She crossed her arms angrily, throwing a pout. She was getting increasingly fed up with Amethyst’s...vagueness, as of late.

Amethyst shook her hands in front of her. “Alright, alright, chill. I...” She let out a heavy sigh, looking toward the door of the elevator. “I mighta set somethin up for you, without really telling you.” She bit her lip.

Ruby sighed, then breathed back in, slowly enough to convey her frustration while still keeping her cap on. “That’s fine, I...I mean, I guess I can make time right now. Not like I was doing anything...” She huffed. “What is it, are we joining a club or something together?”

“Uh, no, not really. But, listen, it’ll be fine. You just keep your cool, I’ve already made this connection and everything, alright? You can’t just have me spending my sweet talking skills to bail on me here.”

“I’m not gonna like this, am I.” Ruby huffed again and relaxed against the wall, arms determinedly crossed.

“It’ll be fine!"

“Amethyst, what have you pulled me into?”

Just that moment, a voice came from in front of her.

“Miss Ruby,” Ruby blinked, confused, and turned to look at the vocal perpetrator.  Pearl stood a few feet ahead of her, arms crossed and her nose, for once, not upturned toward Ruby.  
  
“Wh-you, uh-!?” She looked from Pearl to Amethyst, who nodded and shrugged. “I told you I’d take care of it.  ‘Least she’s alive still!” She noted with a grin.

“Pardon?” Pearl said, an edge of concern popping into her voice.

“Kidding, P.  Never thought of hurting a hair on your head.”

Pearl visibly bristled.  “My name, Miss Amethyst, is Pearl.  Please keep it as such.”

Amethyst snorted.  “Sure thing, ma’am.  You gonna give me a rubric too?  This gonna be on the midterm?”

Pearl frowned, jabbing a finger at Amethyst.  “Oof, you are just so…so-“

“Uh,” Ruby piped up, having been watching the two go back and forth.  “No offense meant, uh, Pearl.  But.  What are you doing here?  You hate me.”

Pearl drew in a breath.  “I do not hate you, Miss Ruby.  I simply intended to remind you of the proper respect due to our peers.  Honestly, perhaps I didn’t understand what you were going through, but that’s not any excuse for-“

“P, on track.” Now it was Amethyst’s turn to keep her arms crossed, raising an eyebrow in Pearl’s direction.

Pearl grumbled about her nickname again before taking a slow breath in.  “I mean to apologize, Miss Ruby. It has…come to my attention that I acted perhaps too brashly in judging your actions.  Although I don’t know what, per say, Amethyst has informed me that you were going through, erm…”

“You had some shit happening. Girl troubles.” Amethyst nudged Ruby, who had since gone silent.  “Amethyst!” Ruby protested, her cheeks flushing again. Amethyst snorted.

“What I mean to say, Miss Ruby, is that I simply wish to apologize. In Amethyst’s words, I ‘went off' on you, and that wasn’t right of me.  I’m…I’m sorry.”

Ruby was quiet for a moment, coughing a little.  “Hey, like, don’t worry about it.  I guess I must have…really bothered you for you to come for me the way you did.  I get a little hot sometimes-“ Ruby punctuated herself, elbowing Amethyst gently when she scoffed at sometimes-“and I might’ve overreacted too.  So, like.  I guess it’s mutual?” Ruby wasn’t great at apologies.  “like, just let it all go, I guess.  We’re, uhm.  We’re cool.”

Pearl sighed, smiling.  “Good to know.  I hope we can become closer, er, acquaintances, Miss Ruby.”

Ruby chuckled awkwardly, rubbing her arm.  “Yeah, totally.  Uh, and you can just do Ruby.  I’m not your boss or anything.”

Amethyst grinned, waving her arms.  “And we’re a family again!  Great.  You got anywhere to be, P?”

Pearl pinched her eyebrows.  “Youre not giving in on this, are you, Amethyst?”

“Congrats, sounds like you know Amethyst already,” Ruby said, grinning for the first time since their reintroduction.  Amethyst giggled in response.  


“Well, yes.  I am busy.  I work as Miss Quartz aide, and I’ve been helping her grade.  In fact, I’m due back soon, miss ‘A’.”

 

Amethyst huffed. “Bummer.  Let’s hang sometime or something.  You need fresh air, girl.”

Pearl shrugged. “I’ll keep in touch.”

Amethyst clicked and wagged her finger. “I’ll find ya if you don’t.  We’ll see you later though!”

Ruby waved as Pearl bid then farewell, stepping back into the elevators.

“You give me heart attacks.” Ruby said, playfully punching Amethyst in the arm.  Amethyst chuckled.  “Aintcha glad though!?  You’re all set!  And you made a new bud.”

Ruby half-groaned.  “You were serious!? About hanging out and everything?”

“Duh,” Amethyst chirped, grin bursting wide once again.  “Now cmon, let’s head back. I bet your girl is missing you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had this sitting in my writing program for like a month
> 
> I failed you all
> 
> Next chapter soon though I love u guys


End file.
